Press Release for Monday, May 2, 2011

Noted Photographer Discusses Self-Taught Artists in Florida

The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville, a cultural resource of the University of North Florida, will host a lecture and book signing by noted artist and photographer Gary Monroe at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 19. Author of “Extraordinary Interpretations: Florida’s Self-Taught Artists,” he will speak about a group of Florida self-taught artists whose works display raw emotion and independent spirit, disregarding artistic rules, training and traditions.

Monroe, a native of Miami Beach, received a master’s degree in fine arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1977. Upon returning home, he photographed the old world Jewish community that characterized South Beach. Since 1984, he has photographed throughout Haiti and later looked at tourism across Florida, especially the "rite of passage" of vacationers at Disney World. He also “wanders aimlessly” to photograph in other countries – Brazil, Israel, Cuba, India, Trinidad, Poland and Egypt to name a few. Recently, he has been looking at the landscape, especially the transformation of place due to corporate-driven planning.

Sponsored by Folio Weekly, each third Thursday of every month throughout its “Stranger in Paradise: The Works of Reverend Howard Finster” exhibition, the museum will offer fun, inexpensive, educational events to enhance appreciation and understanding of Finster’s work and provide broader historical context of the artist’s place within contemporary art. The Third Thursday events are free to MOCA members and included with the price of admission for non-members. Normal gallery hours will be extended to 9 p.m. for these specific evenings. The exhibition runs through Sunday Aug. 28.